Site visits up next for Adrian superintendent candidates

The process of finding the Adrian school district’s next superintendent will continue after the start of the new year with visits to the home districts of both finalists.

The candidates are Robert Behnke, assistant superintendent for instructional services at Northville Public Schools, and Catherine Cost, assistant superintendent of K-12 instructional support services at Farmington Public Schools.

“I feel very strongly we have two candidates who could be very good leaders of our district,” school board president Jed Engle said.

Engle said the process has been “very thorough” and that he has been pleased with it so far.

Consultant Michael Wilmot recommended that the board send a group of about seven people, and that the same people visit both Northville and Farmington.

The site visits for a superintendent candidate are typically a mirror image of the candidates’ visit to the district where they are applying, Wilmot said. That means the delegation from Adrian will meet with people from a variety of groups, such as teachers, parents and community members.

The purpose, Wilmot said, is to see that each candidates’ words line up with what they’ve done in their current jobs.

The candidates will also be asked to supply at least 25 names and phone numbers of people who the delegation did not meet during the visit, but who represent the same constituent groups in the district.